Playwriting involves more than just writing plays, including editing, restoring, adapting, and consulting on musical productions. It also includes dramaturgy, which involves staging, set design, and theater history. Playwrights may work full-time for theaters or be hired as consultants. They have won lawsuits claiming copyright and royalties for their work.
Dramaturgy is a branch of the theatrical arts which consists of staging productions. A playwright’s role in a production can be very varied, depending on where he was trained and the philosophy of the theater for which the playwright is working. Different national theater traditions also have different beliefs about the role of playwriting in theater production, which can sometimes cause confusion with international productions.
While a playwright may be a playwright, playwriting is a much broader field. Playwrights may write plays, but may also edit and restore plays, assist with adaptations of plays, and work on musical productions such as operas. A playwright may work with a playwright on the development of a play, and playwrights may also be hired by composers as consultants.
In addition to being involved in the language and music of the stage, dramaturgy also involves staging itself, including blocking actors, set design, and the aesthetic composition of theater productions. Playwriting also includes choreography and the placement of aesthetic elements on stage, with playwrights studying topics such as lighting design, costumes, props, and set design throughout their training. Playwriting can also involve theater criticism, which is why some theater directors, producers, and consultants are trained in this field.
The study of playwriting also includes the study of theater history. An experienced playwright is familiar with the history of the theatrical tradition, often across many cultures, and can place historical plays in context. A theater that wants to stage a Shakespearean festival true to William Shakespeare’s Elizabethan roots, for example, would probably retain a playwright to learn more about the historical context of the plays, what the theatrical experience was like during this time, and how the actors spoke and they moved on stage.
Many large theaters maintain a full-time playwright to assist with all productions, and he or she may also manage the theater’s resource library and maintain detailed records of the production’s history. Smaller theaters may hire a consultant for specific productions or may split the duties of a playwright and creative director or similar member of theater staff. Playwriting is so widely recognized as an important part of the creative process that they have successfully won lawsuits claiming they are entitled to the copyright on their work and a share of the royalties for the productions they worked on.
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